As part of the Puccini festival, the Hungarian State Opera is giving Pussini's La Rondine its first Hungarian staging since it was first presented in this country in 1927 at the City Theatre, in a production directed by Ferenc Anger being mounted in partnership with the Hungarian Opera of Kolozsvár (Cluj-Napoca).

Having celebrated the Puccini anniversaries, with its new season the Hungarian State Opera will introduce the 52nd International Eucharistic Congress that is to take place in Budapest in 2020. The Opera announces its Christian Spirit Season as a monumental prologue to this significant event. At the Erkel Theatre and the newly opened Eiffel Art Studios, productions are to be staged that have either been inspired by biblical stories, or those that convey Christian ideas and values in more indirect ways, but also ones which debate them.

Oh, my God! – is what the astonished audience might have said seeing George Balanchine’s and Harald Lander’s innovative choreographies when they were first performed. The OMG dance show of the Hungarian National Ballet pays tribute to the work of the two choreographers, evoking the era between 1947 and 1950 with three pieces from the oeuvres of the two masters.

The Opera House in Budapest is currently undergoing extensive restoration and modernisation. Until its reopening in 2020, our performances can be seen at the Erkel Theatre, the second venue of the Hungarian State Opera.

Having celebrated the Puccini anniversaries, with its new season the Hungarian State Opera will introduce the 52nd International Eucharistic Congress that is to take place in Budapest in 2020. The Opera announces its Christian Spirit Season as a monumental prologue to this significant event. At the Erkel Theatre and the newly opened Eiffel Art Studios, productions are to be staged that have either been inspired by biblical stories, or those that convey Christian ideas and values in more indirect ways, but also ones which debate them.

The Hungarian State Opera offers a wide range of subscriptions for its 2019/20 Christian Spirit Season. The names of subscriptions for the 2019/20 seasons have changed, but their code numbers remain the same. This years' subscriptions have been named after artists who have been awarded the Kossuth Prize, named Chamber Singer, Étoile, or Chamber Artist, and take an active part in productions of the institute as singers, dancers, musicians, creative artists or consultants.

The Opera House in Budapest is currently undergoing extensive restoration and modernisation. Until its reopening in 2020, our performances can be seen at the Erkel Theatre, the second venue of the Hungarian State Opera.

There is no life without stories. Zoltán Kodály's Háry János, however, is one of the greatest dreamers to ever take the musical stage: “Everything he says is reality interwoven with fantasy, illuminated with the genius of folk tales”, declared the composer. The marvellous adventures of the rascally veteran from Nagyabony combined with Hungarian folk songs scored for full orchestra have been enchanting audiences since 1926. Discussing the production that has run at the Erkel Theatre since 2013, director Attila Vidnyánszky said, “Háry János is about how, amidst the centuries of failures and defeats of Hungarian history, to find in our dreams a salve for these wounds.”

PrologueIn the village of Nagyabony, the regulars gather at the inn to hear the aged veteran János Háry tell his stories. The judge, the student and a few farmers sit down to sip wine and listen to the old man's stories, which many of them take with more than one pinch of salt.

Adventure I: Háry stands guard on the Austrian frontier. The Austrian border guard refuses to allow anyone to cross over from the other side, including Marie Louise, the daughter of Emperor Franz, and her retinue – with Baron Ebelasztin among them, as well as the coachman Marci, driver of the imperial coach. Háry, together with the other Hungarians, pushes the guardhouse into Austrian territory.

Adventure II: In Vienna's Burghof, Háry succeeds in taming Lucifer, the most unbreakable steed in the imperial stables. As a reward, Marie Louise gives him a violet. Baron Ebelasztin, stricken with jealousy, exercises the authority given to him by Napoleon to present the Emperor of Austria with a declaration of war.

Adventure III: Hussars are encamped below Milan castle. Napoleon attacks, but his forces fall before a single wave of Háry's sword. Napoleon himself is taken prisoner. Marie Louise arrives: she wants Háry for her husband instead of Napoleon. Örzse appears, and is unwilling to part with her betrothed.

Adventure IV: In the Viennese court, Háry and Marie Louise are getting ready for their wedding. The little princes tell Háry what they've learned in school. The court marches in. Háry doesn't want Marie Louise's hand or a princely title. Instead he wants to return to Nagyabony, the village of his birth, together with Örzse.

Epilogue: in the inn at Nagyabony, Háry reaches the end of his story, which relates how the lovers held a big wedding and lived happily together until poor Örzse passed away. This meant that no witness remained who could verify Háry's tale. But none was needed, either, for “no one on earth is as valiant/as our Uncle Háry was!”